THE LIST: Honoring Kiowa County Veterans

Monday

Nov 12, 2012 at 1:18 PMNov 12, 2012 at 1:23 PM

Many of our service men and women left their homes, farms and families to fulfill an unwavering dedication to the freedoms and values, which many of us take for granted. Even those who had no choice, felt compelled to honor the instinctual bond between this country and its people, which puts the needs of the many over the needs of the few.

Patrick Clement

Many of our service men and women left their homes, farms and families to fulfill an unwavering dedication to the freedoms and values, which many of us take for granted. Even those who had no choice, felt compelled to honor the instinctual bond between this country and its people, which puts the needs of the many over the needs of the few.

I’ve spent the past year and a half meeting our local veterans in various capacities and not necessarily as a reporter, but in my personal life as well. I have found them to be wonderful people with a true perspective on the world and the people that inhabit it. I am blessed to be in a position where I can salute such a group of people for whom the word “honor” may very well have been created. We truly honor you for your strength, sacrifice and selflessness in the face of certain peril, fear and uncertainty.

Here is a list of past and present Kiowa County veterans. By no means is this list all-inclusive as a number of local veterans have been researching and compiling the list for many years and there is an assumption that there are names that have yet to be included. However, it is as complete a list as I could find for publication. If there is a name that should appear on this list, please contact Doris Headrick at 620.548.2560. As the list is so large, it is not in exact alphabetical order and there maybe the occasional misspelling, error or duplicate. I have published this list in the hope that the revelation of the sheer size of the list and the number of names, estimated at 1,700, will put the sacrifice of our own small community into perspective.